So Cold Outside
by amerikanka
Summary: Gideon drops off a letter for Marlene and she's very reluctant to let him go... after all, the night is cold and she'd be a terrible friend if she let him freeze, so really, it's a matter of conscience that he has to stay.


Hey look at this! Not only did I manage to write something over my winter break, it's not even depressing! Woah. Leave a review and let me know what you think!

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><p>Gideon stomped his feet on the doorstep of the McKinnon Castle. Doorstep was a word he used loosely – the place had a drawbridge and everything. He stood under the eaves of a great arched double door, studded with dark bolts and banded with long strips of cold grey iron, and tapped his wand on the door. He couldn't hear anything from the outside but he knew the sound triggered by his wand was a clanging bell echoing throughout the castle until someone silenced it.<p>

The door did recognize his wand though, meaning that the iron bolts and strips wouldn't attack him, the trees would come to life and beat him, and the gates of the outer walls wouldn't prevent his exit. He knew that precaution was a good thing, especially in a huge family home like this one, but the wards on the McKinnon lands were nasty even by ancient standards. Flying bolts and homicidal trees would be the least of his worries if he attempted to gain access where he wasn't wanted.

Soon enough the door opened, light spilling out onto the snow covered grounds enclosed by the inner wall of the castle. "Gideon!" Moira McKinnon exclaimed. "Get in here before you catch your death! That storm outside would be nothing compared to what Marly would do to me if I let you freeze!" She ushered him inside with shooing motions, then shut and barred the door.

"I take it you're here to see her?" Moira asked after she had practically shoved Gideon into a living room decorated in the McKinnon colors of dark blue and gold. He nodded and sat down on an exceedingly comfortable couch. Within seconds a house-elf had brought him tea and biscuits.

"MARLY!" Moira bellowed, causing Gideon to laugh. He had been over at the McKinnon household often enough to know that that was a normal way to call people. She had directed her shout up a staircase, and Gideon could hear Marlene shouting back from somewhere upstairs dimly. Clearly Moira was able to make more sense of it than Gideon could, and responded, "YOU'VE GOT A VISITOR!"

Gideon hadn't taken two sips of his tea before Marlene came sliding down the banister of the staircase, grinning at him with her perfect smile. She sauntered up and nudged Moira out of the way with her hip. "I'll deal with him from here, thanks sis." Moira rolled her eyes and waved goodbye to Gideon, walking off through a door with the same sort of catlike grace that Marlene had. _It must run in the family_, Gideon thought, not for the first time.

The sisters looked alike as well, although Moira was older. Same dark blond curls, same cobalt blue eyes that a man could lose his mind in. Alice McKinnon, newly Longbottom, and Shona McKinnon (the eldest of the sisters) had the same eyes but dark hair, taking after their mother. But Moira and Marlene both had the classic McKinnon looks, golden and blue and glorious.

They were the closest of the siblings as well, Gideon knew. Being closest in age to each other, only a year apart, had forged an unusual closeness that Gideon normally only saw between twins like himself and Fabian. "Well look what the kneazle dragged in," Marlene teased gently, reclining lazily in a chair across from him. "What are you doing out on a night like this?"

"News," Gideon said, fishing a folded and sealed piece of parchment out of his robes. "Dumbledore's got your next assignment, unless I miss my guess."

Marlene took it, ripping open the seal. "Your guess was right," she commented, looking at the paper intently before tossing it into the fire. "I've got to leave tomorrow night. At least it's nothing urgent."

"I hope whatever it is goes well," Gideon said, finishing off his tea. "I shouldn't stay. I'm on duty tomorrow as well."

"But you just got here," Marlene said playfully, batting her long, thick eyelashes at him.

He rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "Yeah, and now I have to leave. It was nice seeing you."

"I was hoping you would come by. I was bored."

"It's late and I'm sure you can entertain yourself in my absence."

A self-satisfied smirk appeared on her face. "You're sure I can? Shouldn't you make sure that I won't be bored after you leave?"

That gave him pause, and he looked at her warily as she got up from her chair and walked towards him, her hips rolling side-to-side with each step. "You're perfectly capable of entertaining yourself," he said, although his voice was slightly less sure than it had been before.

She stopped in front of him and picked up his hands, holding them lightly in her own. "Your hands are like ice!" She gasped, as if she hadn't expected it.

"That's what happens when it's storming and snowy outside," Gideon said, trying to reclaim his hands. "Now I have to go. Fabian is expecting me back."

"Come stand by the fire to warm up before you go, at least," Marlene insisted, pulling him to his feet and dragging him over to the grand fireplace. She left him there and went back to the tea tray, fixing herself a cup. "More tea?"

"I need to go, Marlene," Gideon said, trying to not admire the view of her bending over the table. She fixed him with a look, deep blue eyes smoldering, and he sighed. "Fine, one cup of tea." She grinned and poured him one as he turned back to the fire, warming his hands.

"Here you go." Her voice was low but still mildly playful as she passed him his cup of tea.

He tasted it and looked at her. "What did you put in here?"

Her smile danced on her lips again. "A little something to warm you up. Just a shot of scotch, nothing to worry about."

Gideon shook his head at her. Marlene met his eyes as she took a drink out of her own teacup. He could smell the same whiskey fumes floating up from her cup, mingling splendidly with the black tea. She set down her cup on the mantle of the fireplace and then moved around behind him. "Let me take your coat."

"Marlene, I'm leaving."

"I'll hang it by the fire so it'll be warm for when you leave. It's all damp now – you'll freeze all the quicker if you go back out into the blizzard with that on."

"I wouldn't really call it a blizzard," Gideon said as he shrugged out of his coat, letting her take it.

"There's snow piling up faster than a Grim brings a bad day and it's freezing cold. The moat's iced over and everything. It's a blizzard Gideon Prewett, might as well accept that."

He laughed. "Fine, I give in. It's a blizzard. And since it is a blizzard, I should head home before it gets worse." In response to her pout – the hungry, desiring side of him couldn't resist it, but he forced himself to think straight – he shook his head. "Fabian will worry."

"So Floo him and tell him you'll be late... if home at all. It's freezing outside. I can't in good conscience let you go back out there." She picked up a pot of Floo powder on the mantle and offered it to him, looking innocent.

Gideon wasn't fooled, but at the same time he wasn't resisting. "Fine," he said, taking a pinch of the powder and tossing it into the flames. They roared green and he said his address while sticking his head in, soon seeing the living room of the flat he shared with Fabian. "Oy, Fabe!"

His brother's feet appeared, then Fabian knelt down. "Yeah?"

"I'll be home later – Marlene isn't letting me leave." Fabian raised an eyebrow, looking at Gideon with a mix of randy approval and being impressed. "No, not – that's not what I – dammit Fabe! There's a blizzard on, don't you know, and it's really not all that safe to be traveling right now. She's really just looking out for my well-being... ahh," Gideon let out a surprised noise as he felt fingers on his spine trailing up to the nape of his neck.

Fabian threw his head back laughing. "Let me know how it goes. See you tomorrow."

"I'll be home before that you – " Gideon was dragged gently but insistently out of the fire by a very persistent witch.

"I think Fabian knows not to worry now. He'll probably take this opportunity to have Emmeline over, so you probably don't want to be there anyway. What say you stay here a little while, just until the storm dies down?"

"Why don't I just Floo home?" This brilliant idea was late in coming.

"We've got wards on the Floo. You can talk to people, but no one can actually come in or out of the fireplace. It's a bit of a bother, but nothing too bad."

Well, there was that idea shot. And Gideon wasn't putting up the best fight to leave, he knew. Partially because he didn't really want to go... he would much prefer to stay the night... especially in the arms of the golden-haired witch... Gideon shut down that train of thought firmly. She was still pining for someone, he knew, and she probably wasn't ready for anything. He wasn't going to hurt their friendship. He couldn't do that to her, not without feeling insanely guilty about it. And even though he did like her as more than a friend, he liked her quite a lot as a friend too.

She wasn't helping his resolution not to try anything though. He had sat on the couch again after being pulled out of the fireplace, and Marlene came and curled up next to him, head on his shoulder. "Are you alright, Lene?" Gideon mentally kicked himself for calling her the name he thought of her as. Sirius called her Mar, and it was clear to Gideon that the two of them had something – what he didn't know, but there was some history there. So Gideon had wanted a nickname for her as well, but not one that was already taken. He knew Moira called her Marly, and that was too cute for the way Gideon thought of Marlene anyway.

So to him she was Lene. It was unimaginative, he knew, but he rather liked the name for her. She was looking at him curiously though, and he did his best to stare back unashamedly. "Lene?" She questioned.

"Moira calls you Marly, Sirius calls you Mar. I wanted something to call you besides your full name as well."

She shrugged. "Fair enough."

"You didn't answer my question."

Marlene rolled her eyes. "I'm alright, Gid. I am."

"You don't sound entirely sure about that."

She threw him an exasperated look. "Why do people always say that?" She complained. "Really, I'm fine. Everyone is overreacting and seeing problems where there aren't any. It's ridiculous."

"If everyone is seeing a problem then there might be a problem."

"Oh honestly!" Marlene snapped. Then she sighed a moment later, looking at Gideon with apology in her eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm just on edge lately. Everyone is."

"Okay." He dared to slip his arm around her shoulders and give her a sideways hug. "Just stay fine. The world's gone crazy – so don't you dare lose it, you hear?"

She giggled, a sound he rarely heard coming from her. "I hear. Same goes for you."

They sat there in silence for a time, watching the fire burn down to embers. Outside the castle Gideon could hear the storm raging dimly. Inside was warm, and he was glad that she'd talked him into staying.

Eventually, he looked down at her. Her breathing was soft, her lips gently parted, and she was sound asleep. He smiled and kissed her forehead before shifting slightly, then stood up with her in his arms. He knew where Marlene's bedroom was and he thought she wouldn't mind him putting her to bed. It would be a lot more comfortable than the couch, and then he would head home. He'd prove Fabian wrong.

Gideon carried Marlene up two flights of stairs and nudged her door open. Her room was lovely, with big bay windows and thick wall tapestries to keep the chill out. A fire was already banked in her fireplace and the room was cozily warm. Her bed was turned down and he set her in it gently before drawing the covers up around her shoulder. "Sleep well, Lene," he whispered before turning to go.

A small hand caught his. "Gid?" Marlene's sleepy voice asked.

"I thought you were asleep," he responded, turning back to her.

She shook her head. "I wasn't." He smirked at her. He could tell she was lying, and a pretty scowl etched its way across her face. "Really."

"Whatever you say."

"Stay with me." That stopped his banter, and he looked at her curiously. "Just stay the night with me, Gideon. My bed is plenty big enough." He could see that. The McKinnons had always lived in comfort, and Marlene's bed was large and piled high with blankets and pillows. It had deep blue hangings made of plush velvet trimmed in gold, and even the wooden frame of the bed looked warm, a golden-red wood that practically glowed in the firelight.

Her eyes smouldered in the light cast by the flickering flames, the cobalt blue framed by waves of dark gold curls. She was lovely and she knew it, and what's more he knew it as well. "That's a bad idea, Lene." His voice was low and intense, and he suddenly wanted desperately to have her laugh and brush off his doubts, his knowledge that it wouldn't just be sleeping confirmed.

A smile curled around her dark pink lips – naturally so, not a hint of color or makeup around her face. "I think it's a fantastic idea myself, but... maybe not. Go home if you like, then. I'll just be laying awake here, alone in my big, empty bed." She stretched, catlike, and then slid out of her bed, strolling over to her wardrobe and opening a drawer. Marlene pulled out a dark blue nightgown, trimmed in gold like everything McKinnon, and held it up against her body.

Gideon swallowed. Even though she was still wearing her day clothes, the nightgown was silk and clung. It was short, barely hitting her midthigh. She raised an eyebrow and smirked at him before laying the nightie down and pulling off her top. She was wearing a lacy light blue bra and her body was just as fit and sexy as he'd imagined it to be... not that he'd imagined her naked before or anything. Soon enough the lacy scrap of clothing was covered up by the nightie.

Marlene shimmied out of her pants and Gideon caught the barest glimpse of matching underwear. She padded back to her bed and slipped under the covers with an inviting smile, patting the mattress next to her. "Come on," she purred. "You know you want to. And baby, it's so cold outside."

That did it. Gideon stripped down to his boxers in record time and fell into the bed next to her. She laughed, a low and sultry sound, and let her arm drape over his bare chest. "Much warmer." She nuzzled her nose into the place between his neck and shoulder and sighed happily. "Night."

Gideon blinked. "R-really?" He asked, cursing himself the moment his voice cracked like some boy who'd never even seen a girl's legs above the knees before. _Regain your dignity_! The part of him that sounded irritatingly like Fabian yelled. "I don't think so."

It was the work of a moment and nothing more to roll on top of her and pin her arms above her head. "You get all sexy and conniving and just plan to go to sleep?"

She grinned up at him. "Have I been bad?" She leaned up before he could do anything about it and kissed him hard, lips parting so that she could bite his lower lip in a matter of seconds. She was forward and wonderful, and he kissed her back with equal fervor. When the kiss ended he looked down at her. Marlene's cobalt eyes were fiery and longing, and he bit her earlobe as she moaned.

"Very," he said, lowering his head to press a kiss to the base of her throat. He could feel it when she gasped at the sudden touch and he smiled, kissing her collarbone as he did so. She arched her back in pleasure, pressing her breasts to his chest, and there wasn't much talking after that.

Gideon woke up the next morning with Marlene curled up against him, nose in that same place as she'd wanted to fall asleep the night before, the crook between shoulder and neck. The light peeking through her window around the edges of the floor-length curtains was white, and he knew that the storm had stopped. Laying his cheek onto her head, he drifted off to sleep again for a little while.

When he woke again, Marlene was pulling the curtains open. She turned around as he rustled the covers and smiled sweetly at him. "Morning," she said.

"A good morning to you as well," he returned.

She walked back to the bed and crawled back under the covers. They were silent for a time before he heard her speak. "So now what?"

Gideon would have asked what she meant, but he already knew and he didn't need to look like an idiot. "I like you, Lene. I have for a while now."

"I like you as well, Gid. But that doesn't really answer my question."

"How do you want your question answered? I don't want to push you into anything – I know you're still hurting over something."

He felt her sigh more than heard it. "Not as much anymore. That was doomed to failure anyway, and I'd be deluding myself if I mourned what couldn't be. You wouldn't be pushing me into anything. I do what I want, and if I wasn't ready for something than I wouldn't have had you stay the night."

"I'm glad you did. I certainly had fun."

She laughed, confusing him. "That's not exactly... not what I meant. I would have slept with you, sure, but I wouldn't have had you sleep here. You'd have been in a guest room."

"Oh." Gideon was silenced by that. "Well – did you at least enjoy yourself?" He was being overly defensive and he knew that, but that didn't mean that he wasn't still a little worried.

"Of course I enjoyed it! Merlin, Gid..." He could hear the eye-roll present in her statement.

He steeled himself. It had been a long time since he'd asked out a girl, especially one that intimidated and exhilarated him as much as Marlene did. "Then... do you want to go get coffee? I know you've got that mission tonight, and I'm on duty, but I'd like to take you out before that."

"Is this just coffee or is this a date?"

"This is a date. I'm asking you out, and not as a friend."

She pounced on him, kissing him deeply. It was all passion with her, all passion and fire, and he couldn't get enough of it. She kissed like each one was the last kiss she'd ever have, and it lent a sense of urgency so fitting for the wartime that they lived in. He returned her kiss with equal fervor, cupping her face in one of his hands. When they broke apart she smiled at him, a cat-got-the-canary smile that was so Marlene his breath was taken away... though that might have been from the kiss he'd just received. "I'd love to go out with you, Gideon Prewett. Let me just find some pants."


End file.
